Something Borrowed
by Rainsong
Summary: When Lily and James have pre-wedding jitters, Sirius delivers to each a pep talk to be remembered.


Something Borrowed  
by Rainsong  
  
Summary: When Lily and James have pre-wedding jitters, Sirius comes to the rescue, delivering to each a pep talk to be remembered.  
  
A/N: Ok, I'm at the end of my rope with this fanfic. I had written half of it when my computer crashed, taking my unsaved work with it to the Underworld of Technology. So, of course, I rewrite the fic and save it to a floppy. Next day, I open it to finish up the ending when, to my horror, every time I try to open the file, it freezes up Microsoft Works. My floppy being ridden with errors, I was never able to reopen that file. So, for the third time, I wrote this fanfic, saving it on the hard drive. I've lost sleep over this one, so send me some pleasant dreams for tonight and REVIEW!  
  
Disclaimer: Harry Potter copyright of JK Rowling, Bloomsbury, Raincoast, and Scholastic respectively. Sirius Black also belongs JKR, but his heart belongs to me :)  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Lily stood in front of the mirror, straightening her hair for the millionth time that morning. As she examined it from each angle, she noticed another strand sticking out. She went back to prodding it into place on her head, where all of her fiery hair had been piled up in delicate curls, adorned with what else, but beautiful white lilies. It had to be perfect. That was what today was about, right? Perfection, timeless love, parties..  
  
In the mirror's reflection, she saw the door creak open behind her. Moments later, Sirius poked his head in, peering around before he saw her standing on the stool directly ahead. He grinned, and walked into the room. He was already dressed, his dark hair properly placed and his robes in good order for a wedding. For Sirius, he looked strangely put-together."At least someone is," Lily mumbled to herself. She turned her head to look at him.  
  
  
"Is it mass hysteria out there?" she asked.  
  
"Er, its iffy. I think your Aunt Gertrude insulted James' Uncle Marlo, because I saw a champagne glass fly between them." Sirius said. "But then again, that could just be a Muggle greeting I don't know about." he added thoughtfully.  
  
"Its not. Its called an exchange of foul words. And while Uncle Marlo's toupee is hideous, I should probably go talk to Gertrude." Lily said. She stepped off the stool and headed for the door. But suddenly, Sirius stepped out in front of her, and leaned casually on the doorframe.  
  
"Nah-ah. You're not leaving. It's bad luck if James happens to bump into you. And besides, it'll ruin your grand entrance later." Sirius said firmly.  
  
Lily made another move for the door. Sirius put one arm across the entire doorframe, blocking her from leaving.  
  
"But they're all going to get into some terrific row if I don't put a stop to it now! There will be blood and carnage all over the black marble, and Gertrude will knock Marlo's toupee into the punch bowl. Soon there will be confusion, and confusion leads to the trampling of elderly guests, and trampling leads to ruining my Happy Day!" Lily said, in a very quick and shrill voice. She collapsed onto a nearby ottoman.  
  
Sirius pulled up another ottoman and sat down across from Lily. After a moment of watching her with her head in her hands, he asked the million dollar question of the moment.  
  
"Are you nervous?"  
  
Lily looked up at him. "Of course! This is..its.." she stammered, lost for words.  
  
"The biggest commitment of your life?" Sirius finished for her. She nodded helplessly. Sirius rolled his eyes.  
  
"Aw, come on, Lil'. Its not like you're entrusting your future to say, me. Its James. He's reliable, and generally commitment-savvy."  
  
"But what if everything gets hard? We could lose our jobs, our house, everything! Then what would happen?" Lily asked.  
  
"Well, you'd be forced to live with me, and rebuild your lives. But I suppose you realize that you're being utterly delusional?" Sirius asked, looking at Lily skeptically.  
  
"You have no room to talk about being delusional, Sirius Black! And I know its far-fetched." Lily said, sounding defeated. "But in the last few days I've had worries about things that I never even acknowledged up until now. I'm sorting things out." she said, setting her head in her hands again.  
  
"Well, then talk to Prongs about it, not me." Sirius said. He grabbed a mint from a nearby table and popped it into his mouth. Lily looked up again.  
  
"You're totally insensitive, you know that?" Lily said incredulously.  
  
"Not insensitive. Realistic. No one else is going to tell you to snap out of it and enjoy the wedding, I promise you that. But if you feel like spilling all of your irrational fears and having me beat them down into oblivion with pure logic, knock yourself out." Sirius said, grabbing another mint and tossing it to Lily.  
  
She sighed. "I suppose you're right. Who am I kidding? My wedding will be great." Lily said confidently. "Then we'll buy a cottage with vines growing up the sides, and have candlelit dinners every night and-"  
  
"Be the stars of the neighborhood, have five beautiful children, and a private pot of gold. Again with the unrealistic." Sirius said, cutting off Lily's fantasy.  
  
"How can I be realistic when I'm living a fairy tale?" Lily asked wistfully. Sirius made an exaggerated gagging sound, causing Lily to hurl a pillow in his direction. Instead of tossing it back at her, he calmly set it down beside of him and asked, with keen interest, "Do you really plan on having children?"  
  
"Oh, sure, someday. Maybe one or two." Lily said offhandedly.   
  
"That sounds great. Just don' t name them after anyone in your family. I was checking out the place cards on the tables, and I'm beginning to think you two got really lucky with 'Lily' and 'James'. To think, you could have been Mildred and Godfrey, or something awful like that." Sirius said, shuddering.  
  
"Yes, I agree. No family names. 'Crevis Potter' has no ring to it. Maybe we could name our firstborn after you, Sirius." Lily said.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"No." Lily said flatly. It was now Sirius' turn to throw a pillow at Lily. She dodged it artfully, holding onto her hair the whole time.  
  
"Sorry. I'd give you the satisfaction, but I've been working on my hair alone for over an hour. Can't risk it."  
  
Sirius nodded knowingly. "That's alright. But you will be barraged once this whole shindig is over. How you can spend so much time and money on something that lasts for no more than a day is truly beyond me." Sirius said, fiddling with a glass bowl on the nearby table.  
  
"Like I said, its my Happy Day, and that warrants large sums of spending money. But I'll be happy when its all over. The honeymoon will be relaxing, right?"   
  
Sirius snorted. "Don't ask me. You create your own experience, love."   
  
"Then mine will be memorable. And don't even make a comment Sirius!" Lily said warningly as she watched Sirius' eyebrows narrow and his mouth curve into a dangerous smile as it always did right before he said something witty or perverted.  
  
"Where are Remus and Peter?" Lily asked, looking towards the door once again.  
  
"Peter's probably eating whatever food you've already set out, and Remus is doing his usher-ly duties of helping people find their seats." Sirius said, waving a hand impatiently.  
  
"I'm glad James picked you as best man." Lily said suddenly. Sirius looked back, with a note of surprise on his face, and waited for her to continue.  
  
"I mean, you're our best friend. We trust you a lot. And if I had to pick one person to stand with us on this day, it would be you." Lily said, smiling softly. "You mean everything to us, Sirius, you know that, right?"  
  
Sirius, looking deeply touched, nodded. "I'd stand here and pour my love for you guys out, too, but I need to save my sentimental mushiness for the toast."   
  
Lily smiled, surprised. "You prepared a toast?"   
  
"'Course I did. I wasn't just gonna go up there and candidly tell some embarrassing story from Hogwarts. My toast is totally prepared, and chock full of lovin', don't worry." he said happily.  
  
"Thanks," Lily said, looking genuinely relieved. "Are you nervous?"  
  
"Yeah, a bit." Sirius confessed. Lily, knowing that this response came all too easily, waited for Sirius' usual joke. She wasn't disappointed. "I mean, that's my job as best man, isn't it? I have to watch out for you guys during this whole ceremony. Honestly, I should be a wreck. The two most klutzy, daft people I've ever met joined in holy matrimony. I'll be grateful if you don't accidentally knock down a candle and torch the whole place."  
  
"You sure know how to compliment, Sirius." Lily said sarcastically.  
  
"What can I say? Its a tool of the trade, Lily my dear." Sirius said, grinning proudly.  
  
"This reminds me a lot of graduation." Lily said, looking suddenly nostalgic.  
  
"Er, people crying, drunkenness, and clothes that'll cause rashes later in life?" Sirius asked, pulling at his collar.  
  
"No, more like friends, family, and a lot of happiness. Do you think it'll always be like this? I suppose Remus needs to look for work, its not his fault he's busy, and Peter's just plain lazy. But do you think we'll always be together? You, me and James?" Lily asked with uncertainty.  
  
Sirius looked scandalized. "Of course! Thats not even a question." he said.  
  
Lily smiled. "You'll be around a lot, I'm sure. At the house, at work, with the Order. You're right, its not a question." Lily said.  
  
"Well I'm glad that's settled. I read once that going into important life events, you should keep a positive mindset, because the thoughts you have during moments like these have much more effect on you then thoughts you have while in the shower, for instance." Sirius said matter-of-factly.  
  
"Catching up on your reading?" Lily asked, sounding amused.  
  
"Sort of. I was at Flourish & Blotts the other day, and they had a five-book potpourri that was on sale. I couldn't resist." Sirius said.  
  
"Ah, I see. And you happened to tackle the self-help book among them first?"  
  
"Well, yeah. It was called 'Butterbeer for the Soul'. Deep stuff." Sirius said.  
  
"I've read that. Some of it is sort of depressing, though. That one story, about Ministry's Four, did you read it?" Lily asked. Sirius shook his head no.  
  
"Well, they were that group of witches and wizards that got lost in that storm while trying to find lost Aurors. Two of them went insane, one of them died, and the other one was lost and hasn't been seen since. In 'Butterbeer for the Soul' one of their friends recounts their childhood. Its depressing because, no matter how carefree and happy these people are in the story, you know they're all going to meet horrible ends. It puts a damper on it." Lily said.  
  
"Hate those sort of stories." Sirius said shortly, shaking his head sadly.  
  
"Oh well, its a fantastic book. Glad you've learned something from it." Lily said on a cheerier note.  
  
"So, have we successfully curbed your nervousness?" Sirius asked. Lily sat silently for a moment, looking thoughtful.  
  
"I think we have. It's hell sitting in here alone with your thoughts for such a long time. Thanks a lot for listening, no matter how delusional or unrealistic I may be." Lily said.  
  
Sirius smiled, and checked his watch. "They'll be wanting you out there soon, no doubt for pictures."   
  
Lily nodded. "Thats the worst part. I'm not at all photogenic."   
  
"Its not like these are Muggle photographs, Lily. You'll be moving the whole time, not frozen eternally in some embarrassing position." Sirius said.  
  
"Still, I'll probably be moving around at bad angles. It always happens that way." Lily said with despair.   
  
Sirius sighed. "You're hopeless. Absolutely hopeless."  
  
"You're not so hopeful yourself, mister." Lily laughed.  
  
Suddenly, the door behind them opened once more. This time, Remus peered in.   
  
"Oh, hey Sirius." he said, noticing Sirius sitting there. "Lily, they want you in the photography quarters." with that he smiled and left.  
  
Lily and Sirius stood up.  
  
"Well, I suppose this is it. No turning back now." Lily said. "They say the party ends after you get married. Unlucky for me, eh?"  
  
Sirius checked his watch again. "You want to get lucky? Hey, we've still got fifteen, twenty minutes.." he said, raising his eyebrows suggestively.   
  
Lily laughed, hitting him good-naturedly. "Sirius, you're incorrigible."  
  
"Which makes you what, Miss Corrigible Flower Girl?"  
  
Lily half-jumped into Sirius' arms, hugging him like she'd never hugged anyone else before.  
  
"Thanks, Sirius. Love you." she said softly.  
  
"Love you too, Lil'. You look beautiful. Now go make goo-goo eyes at the cameraman. If you're in luck, he'll be French."  
  
Lily laughed. "And what are you going to do?"  
  
Sirius looked thoughtful for a moment. "I should probably go check up on Prongs. He's probably pulled out all of his hair by now, either from nerves or from trying to get it to lay flat for once in his life."  
  
~~~~~  
  
A/N: Never fear, it doesn't end here! Next chapter, Sirius talks to James. Should be interesting, as long as I didn't blow all of my ideas on this one. 


End file.
